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"Well, no," she says, looking away from me for a second. "It was decided for me. But I think it was probably a good idea. What about you?"
"Turns out that's not my scene."
"So you have to go back and do your spells? It's a solitary endeavor?"
I take a step into the elevator, shaking my head as I smile. I press the close door button and notice we're on the same floor together. "Actually, I was probably just going to doom scroll on my phone, but casting spells sounds way more fun."
"Can you do that?"
I nod. "Sure. I can cast spells."
"So you can like…start a fire or whatever with your mind?"
I shake my head, laughing as she stares at me. I don't think she's making fun of me. I think she's being sincere. "No, it's a little more abstract than that," I reply. "Say I did cast a spell for fire. I might find a lighter somewhere nearby or find another fire source if I needed one."
She furrows her brow. "What?" she asks as the elevator starts to move.
I sigh. I've given this spiel before and no one seems to believe me. "It's more about intent and energy. You focus your thoughts and energy on a specific thought, and if your intent is strong enough, you can manifest that into reality."
"But you can't, like, manifest a table into a chair?"
"I can't violate the laws of physics, no," I reply. "I can make someone move a table and put a chair where I want the chair to be."
"Or you can do it yourself, since you're an able-bodied human."
"Yes," I reply. "The chair-table thing isn't a good example."
"So what is a good example?"
"Well, I mostly cast things like luck spells, abundance spells, protection spells…that kind of thing."
"Does it work?"
I furrow my brow. "Yes, but it doesn't work the way you think it does," I tell her.
"So how does it work?"
I'm not sure when she moved–or how she did it without me noticing–but her body has edged closer to mine and there are only a few inches left between us. I can see the black liner around her brown eyes, the way they sparkle when she looks at me. I think she has to be wearing false eyelashes because they're so long, they practically reach her perfectly arched brows. I can see a beauty spot right below her bottom lip, her mouth slightly parted. God, she's so pretty. I could keep looking at her for the rest of the night. I feel like maybe I could keep looking at her forever.
"It's hard to explain," I say. "It's like…"
Before I can finish my sentence, the elevator feels like it's going sideways and it starts to shake.
It's violent. I land against the back of the elevator and Alana lands right on top of me. She stumbles forward when the elevator moves back and forth again, and I sling my arm around her waist to keep her in place.
The elevator shakes again, this time going up and down, the lights flickering. Electricity buzzes around us as the light flickers on and off, the vibration never quite ceasing.
"Are you okay?" I ask into Alana's ear.
"What's happening?" she replies, her voice shaky.
"I don't know." The lights flicker again and the elevator goes down as we're plunged into complete darkness. I can feel it in the pit of my stomach. I can hear Alana's breath, fast and panicked like she's terrified of the dark, and it takes all the restraint I have to keep from sounding like I'm panicking myself.
"What the fuck, Dom?"
"It's an earthquake," I say. "Try to stay calm."
"Stay calm?" she echoes.
